The University of Hong Kong Libraries launched Thursday an exhibition to celebrate the launch of its one millionth e-book.

Among the highlights of the exhibition is an edition of George Staunton's An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain of China published in 1798.

The beautifully produced five-volume set of the former, the only copy that exists in the world, is a genuine and copious account of Lord George Macartney's mission to China and the court of the Qing emperor Qianlong from the King George III between 1792 and 1794.

The Libraries has chosen this to be digitized it as its one millionth e-book.

The exhibition also features a number of valuable books from the Chinese rare book collection of the Libraries, some of which belonged originally to historical and literary figures, including Robert Morrison, the first Protestant missionary to China, and Lu Muzhen, Sun Yat-sen's first wife.

Founded in 1912, the University of Hong Kong Libraries is the oldest and largest academic library in Hong Kong. Its printed collection has grown to over 2.4 million volumes, some of which are rare and unique.

Equally remarkable is the growth of its e-book collection, one million e-books have been accumulated after since 2000.

Source: Xinhua